Every year the same question about insurance rolls around about this time. "Do people really need flood insurance for Long Island NY homes?"

Consider this: Hurricane season in the Atlantic began June 1st and ends November 30th. The Eastern Pacific hurricane season began May 15th and also ends November 30th.

Hurricanes don't just affect coastal homes, but flooding well inland often occurs with land falling tropical systems.

Hurricanes are strong storms that can be life-threatening as well as cause serious property-threatening hazards such as flooding, storm surge, high winds and tornadoes. Preparation is the best protection against the dangers of a hurricane. And that includes deciding whether flood insurance for Long Island NY homes is a smart investment.

Hurricanes cause heavy rains that can cause extensive flood damage in coastal as well as inland areas. Everyone is at risk and should consider flood insurance protection. Flood insurance is the only way to financially protect your property or business from flood damage.

Predictions are pointing to the 2014 hurricane season being a mild season with a below average number of named storms predicted. But it only takes one storm hitting our area to make it a tragic season. In 1992, Hurricane Andrew was one of only four hurricanes that season. Still, it created widespread destruction.

Regardless of whether 2014 is active, or inactive, don't be caught off-guard. A regular homeowner's insurance policy does not cover Long Island NY homes for rising water. You need flood insurance to cover this, and in order to get flood insurance, you must have your flood insurance policy in force for a full 30 days before it will cover your property. And once there is a named storm anywhere in the Atlantic, no new policies can be written to cover that storm.

Flood insurance for Long Island NY homes is the only way to make sure your assets are covered in the event the Long Island NY area experiences any sort of flooding from rising water, not just from tropical storms. Consider yourself warned.

Find more tips under Long Island NY Insurance below Long Island NY Real Estate Categories to your right to help you decide if flood insurance is right for you.

Long Island NY flood insurance will still be affordable, at least for now, thanks to the Senate recently approving the Homeowner Flood Insurance Affordability Act to curb flood insurance rate hikes for homes and commercial properties.

The Senate voted 72-22 to approve the House legislation in order to be done with the issue. It had earlier passed a different bill to address the premium hikes that resulted from Congress' reforms of the flood insurance program two years ago. Those reforms moved the financially troubled program toward more risk-based premiums, but caused rate shock in many areas of the country, including here in Long Island NY .

The National Association of Home Builders praised passage of the legislation. "By providing a more affordable rate structure for policyholders and repealing point-of-sale rate increases, the bill is a boon for home owners and home buyers," said NAHB Chairman Kevin Kelly. "Further, it gives an important boost to home building and remodeling, while simultaneously shoring up the NFIP."

The National Association of Realtors President Steve Brown, said "We appreciate the Senate’s swift action on the legislation, which is a responsible and balanced solution to the skyrocketing flood insurance premiums affecting residential and commercial properties that were unintentionally triggered by the Biggert-Waters reforms to the National Flood Insurance Program."

As passed, the bill repeals FEMA's authority to increase premium rates at time of sale or new flood map, and refunds the excessive premium to those who bought a property before FEMA warned them of the rate increase. The bill limits premium increases to 18% annually on newer properties and 25% for some older ones. Additionally, the bill adds a small assessment on policies until everyone is paying full cost for flood insurance.

Check out our other articles and tips on Long Island NY flood insurance and homeowner insurance by clicking on the Long Island NY Insurance link to your right under Long Island NY Real Estate Categories.

A big question we hear asked quite often is, “do I need Long Island NY flood insurance for my home if I’m not near a body of water?”

Long Island NY Flood Insurance – Most Don’t Have Adequate Coverage

One third of homes damaged by Hurricane Sandy weren’t covered by insurance and most of those that were didn’t have adequate flood insurance.

Consumer Reports says, not only should you have flood insurance, you should buy all you can afford. They receive no monetary gain by making such a statement, but do have everyone’s best interest in mind when it comes to disaster coverage.

Check out our other articles and tips on Long Island NY flood insurance and homeowner insurance by clicking on the Long Island NY Insurance link to your right under Long Island NY Real Estate Categories.

According to a survey by Bankrate.com, 81% of Long Island NY homeowners know that a standard homeowners insurance policy doesn’t cover flood damage, but a separate survey by the Insurance Information Institute found that only 13% of Long Island NY homeowners had a flood insurance policy.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and its National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) identify flooding as the United States’ No. 1 natural hazard.

Princeton Survey Research Associates International surveyed 1,003 U.S. adults, on behalf of Bankrate.com. The telephone survey was fielded from April 4 to 7, 2013. The survey responses were weighted by gender, age, education, race, Hispanic origin, region, and telephone status. Interviews were conducted by landline and cell phone.

Long Island NY Homeowners Know They Are Not Necessarily Covered

Based on a Researchscape assessment of the questionnaire and methodology, this survey is moderately likely to be representative of U.S. consumers in general. The awareness question is a leading question that may overstate actual understanding that flood insurance is not included in homeowners insurance.

In a prepared statement, Michael Barry, spokesman for the Insurance Information Institute, an industry trade group, said “I was very happy that 4 out of 5 survey respondents understood that standard homeowners insurance does not cover flood. This number is a much higher awareness level than we’ve seen in the past.”

FEMA usually classifies properties as either high flood risks or low-to-moderate flood risks. Bankrate.com asked Long Island NY homeowners whether or not they know the correct classification for their home and only 51% said they know the correct risk category.

Statistics show that recognizing the need for separate flood insurance does not always lead homeowners to purchase it. An Insurance Information Institute poll last year found that the number of American households with flood insurance actually decreased from 17 percent in 2008 to 13 percent in 2012.

Amy Bach, executive director of United Policyholders, a San Francisco-based non-profit advocacy group for insurance consumers, says some homeowners get lured by history into a false sense of security. “People have this notion that if it hasn’t flooded in the past, it’s not going to flood,” she says. “While I can understand that thinking, I wouldn’t trust it anymore because of Sandy and all the talk about climate change. If you live near a body of water, it behooves you not to use the past as your only decision point.”

Long Island NY homeowners are urged to study their local flood map carefully to make an informed decision. The best place to start? The NFIP’s user-friendly consumer site, FloodSmart.gov.

For more information concerning insurance, check out our other articles about Long Island NY Insurance to your right under the Long Island NY Real Estate Categories.

Thousands of Long Island residents trying to rebuild from superstorm Sandy are still waiting for final flood insurance settlements, leaving them struggling to pay contractors and frustrated at having half-gutted homes more than three months after being flooded.

Many of these homeowners have been paying premiums for years, even decades, to the government-run National Flood Insurance Program. While most have received some money, nearly half of all New Yorkers who filed flood claims after Sandy still haven’t been paid in full, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The most recent statistics show FEMA had settled 54 percent of the roughly 56,000 flood claims filed in New York State, paying an average of $42,000 per household. Many of the remaining 26,000 homes and businesses statewide have received partial payments, often less than $30,000.

The Long Island region was the hardest hit in the state with 43,100 homes protected by flood insurance inundated by the storm surge in Nassau and Suffolk counties, according to federal statistics. It’s unclear how many of those homeowners filed claims.

Regular homeowners insurance covers damage from wind and fire — but not flooding because most private insurers feel such coverage is too risky. That’s where the government steps in and makes flood insurance available.

Since Sandy, FEMA has provided $876 million in disaster aid in New York to about 112,000 households, many of which were not protected by flood insurance. While the maximum amount is $31,900, few families actually received that much. The average has been $7,800. And in the long run, most with flood insurance will get far more, according to FEMA.

Are you in the Long Island area and still waiting for FEMA to address your flood insurance claim? Post your comments here. We’d love to hear from you.